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The road to a new beginning

13 Nov 2022

  “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one who gets the people to do the greatest things” – Ronald Reagan   For years, especially during the three-decade-long war, the word ‘genocide’ was regularly used by the LTTE – and latterly the Tamil diaspora – to describe the alleged ‘atrocities’ attributed to the State. This particular term, which was used to great effect by these proponents, ultimately resulted in the Government of Sri Lanka being thrown into the international doghouse – a spectre it is still struggling to shake off, especially at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. So profound was its effect that it ultimately came to a point where the word ‘genocide’ became taboo in local mainstream media and was spoken of in hushed tones in Colombo’s NGO cocktail circuit. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, ‘genocide’ is described as “the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group”. The Oxford Dictionary is more brutal, describing it as “the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group”. Now, over a decade after the end of the war and on the back of a major people’s revolution, the President – who was propelled to office as a result of that revolution – has managed to resurrect that abominable word.  It all happened when President Ranil Wickremesinghe addressed Parliament last week. In fact, the essence of what he meant in that address, particularly the reference to ‘youth’ and ‘genocide’ in the same sentence, raised quite a few eyebrows. That reference pointed to the President having finally seen the reality that he chose not to see ever since he got to the hot seat and his newfound readiness to finally give the youth, who were and continue to be in the vanguard of the struggle for change, their due place in the larger scheme of things. The statement came about when the President, who was in Parliament, chose to respond to a question raised by the Chief Opposition Whip on the status quo in Geneva. The President noted that “the right of the youth, younger generation, and even the unborn, is the basic right to live and if they are deprived of this right, that is the worst genocide that can happen”. Having already lived through many such chapters spread over the 45 years he has been in politics, involving sections of the youth population in both the north (’83-’09) and south (’87-’89), he obviously knows – better than anyone – what he is talking about. Having experienced firsthand the might of the modern-day youth in dislodging the last President and their avowed goal of completing what they started – of democratically cleansing a system corrupt to the core – he must surely, by now, be convinced of what needs to be done and the grave consequences of not doing so, which he amply illustrated in Parliament. However, the sudden concern for the legitimate aspirations of our youth and the manner in which he chose to express that concern in Parliament itself, points to a different, more  empathetic Ranil Wickremesinghe who has returned from Egypt than the arrogant, unsympathetic one who took flight for the COP27 summit. This transformation is further embodied by his newfound initiative to put an end – “once and for all,” in his words – to the longstanding ethnic issue. In fact, he has proceeded to impose on himself the stiff target of resolving all issues – 60 odd years in the making – in a matter of just three months, ahead of the nation’s 75th Independence Day celebrations next February. What is quite intriguing, however, is that while the President seems empathetic enough to the call of the youth and is seemingly ready to engage with them, there appears to be a parallel force in Government that is not. Unfortunately, it is this parallel force that seems to have taken the upper hand in controlling the levers of power. That is probably why, even before the President could finish his warning in Parliament of a ‘genocide’ in the making, the Police continued with their high-handed action, cracking down on dissent targeting peaceful protesters at Galle Face and at Colpetty Junction that very day. If the President is sincere in his assertions, then it is about time that he walks the talk and, in doing so, reassures the people that the change they desire is in the making. However, given the duplicitous scenario of the Executive saying one thing and the long arm of the law under him acting to the contrary, one can only surmise two probable scenarios: one, the Executive being insincere in his assertions; two, the Executive being undermined in the execution of powers by a more powerful hand. Wickremesinghe, who is known to sidestep any direct political confrontation, must necessarily face this one head-on if he is to prevail. As to which of these scenarios are at play, only time will tell, but as things stand, it is nothing but right that Parliament as well as political parties take up the President on his word and join in the endeavour to engage the youth in fleshing out a political reform package that will have the desired system change at the heart of it. Simultaneously, all parties, especially the Tamil parties, must heed the President’s call to come to the table to ‘once and for all’ thrash out a reasonable and equitable solution to the Tamil national question. To not do so at this juncture is unbecoming. When the war ended in 2009, it was the assumption of the then President that the matter had been solved for good. For the rest of his tenure, from 2009 to 2015, he proceeded to rub salt into the wounds of war, never once attempting to bring about a political solution to what prompted the war in the first place. Now, finally, we have a President, albeit an interim one, who is ready to put the matter to rest, politically. It is therefore up to the parties that have long been clamouring for a seat at the table to seize the opportunity and arrive at an amicable settlement that will complement the victory achieved 13 years ago. As the illustrious and also industrious former American President Ronald Reagan famously noted, “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one who gets the people to do the greatest things.”  If Ranil Wickremesinghe can achieve what he has set his sights on – the double deal of paving the way for the youth to ascend the high table of statecraft and also, at the same time, preside over the permanent settlement of the ethnic issue, notwithstanding the disruptive political forces standing in the way – not only will the country’s diamond jubilee anniversary of independence in three months’ time be the launch pad for an all-new, forward-looking, united Sri Lanka, it will also cement Wickremesinghe’s political legacy, both of which suddenly appear to be within striking distance.


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